eyes. He might as well be a machine. “Because I won’t let you.”
Walls close around me. Iron bars lock into place. They’ve been there all along, only I couldn’t see them. This is a prison the same as the church. In both places I was kept by a man who thought I was an object. Not a person. Bile rises in my throat.
I run toward the door, expecting to hear Elijah’s footsteps thundering after me, expecting his strong arms to catch me. But I reach the door with no problem, only to be confronted with a black screen. I don’t know the code. I don’t know freaking the code. The handle doesn’t even turn. The door doesn’t open. The alarm system that I thought kept me safe is keeping me captive.
“Let me out,” I say.
He approaches me with caution, like you would a wild animal. That’s how I feel. It’s probably how I look, my hair and eyes gone crazy. “It’s not safe for you out there.”
“Says you, but here’s the problem. I don’t believe a word you say.”
“I’m not lying to you.”
“That’s exactly what liars say.”
His lips twitch, the bastard. “Listen. I’m keeping you safe, and I’m going to find your sister. That’s exactly the situation we were in an hour ago, and you weren’t pissed at me then.”
“That was before I knew you were using my sister in some kind of dangerous mission.”
“She involved herself.”
“And she’s just going to hand over the diamonds? No one’s going to hurt her?”
“That’s up to her.”
Oh God, London. Where are you? “I don’t care. Let me go.”
“That’s not going to happen.”
I glance over Elijah’s shoulder to where Carson stands at attention. His gray eyes meet mine. “You,” I say, desperate now. “Please help me. He won’t let me leave.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am.”
Angry tears flood my eyes. “You knew. All along when we were talking about you and your nine siblings, you knew I was a prisoner here. Your mother would be ashamed of you.”
He does look sober. “Yes, ma’am, but I work for Liam North.”
Apparently working for someone means doing anything they ask, including kidnapping. How did I go from being an ordinary woman who wrote in a coffee shop to being torn between possessive, domineering men? I throw myself at Elijah, using both fists to beat his chest. It’s pointless and maybe even mean, but I don’t care. I’m trapped. Literally trapped, and it feels like I can’t stay in one place. I can’t even hold my body together, so I hit him. My fists bounce off his pecs, not even able to sustain a solid blow. “I hate you,” I say, my voice breaking. “I hate you.”
Those robot green eyes look back at me. “I never thought you would love me. I knew I would never deserve that, but I’m keeping you. I’m not letting you go.”
CHAPTER THIRTY
Elijah
That could have gone better.
When I enter the bedroom, I see that Holly has built a wall made out of pillows right down the middle of the bed. It reminds me of the old bolsters, a wooden board used to separate young people so their hands wouldn’t wander during sleep.
“Holland Ashley Frank.” I got her full name from the dossier Liam gave me.
She does not move.
“Holly. I know you’re not sleeping.”
“I hate you.”
“We need to talk. The more you tell me about your sister, the sooner we can find her.”
She sits up, making the wall of pillows spill over into my side of the bed. “Why would I tell you anything? I don’t want you to find her. I hope she buys up all of Paris with those diamonds.”
“Diamonds like that don’t get sold at pawn shops. She starts flashing those around, someone is going to kill her and keep the black velvet bag.”
She flinches. “And you’re going to help? I don’t believe you.”
“I’m not going to help her sell them. I’m going to help her get out of the goddamn crosshairs.”
“She’s only in the crosshairs because you put her there.”
I sigh, thinking back to that day when I’d seen London in the back alley. For a second I thought she was a prostitute. Then when I recognized her, anticipation beat in my chest. I hoped Holly would be with her. Of course she wasn’t. They weren’t teenagers on a family trip anymore.
Could I have scared London into keeping my secret without giving her anything? Maybe. Maybe not, but I wanted the link to Holly, God help me. That probably makes me fucked in